Teach the Game
A script to teach Lisboa at the table — how you win, the board, a turn, the end, every way to score and what each resource is for.
How you win
“Lisbon, 1755: an earthquake, a tsunami and three days of fire have flattened the city. We are nobles helping the King, the Marquis de Pombal and the royal builder Manuel da Maia rebuild it. Over two periods — about half an hour per player — we build stores, open Public Buildings, ship goods and win the court’s favour. The most wigs wins.”
You earn 
wigs in two ways:
- During the game — stores scored by Public Buildings, full ships, Clergy tiles, the Influence track’s top space, rubble sets at the end of period 1.
- At the end — ships, rubble sets, store and Official majorities, money, Decrees, Royal Favors.
The loop: play a card — tuck it into your portfolio for goods, money and a small action, or send it to the Royal Court for a big Noble action — and draw a new one. Stores make goods, goods buy actions, actions build the city.
The board
- 10 — the Royal Court and the three Nobles: Manuel (Builder), the Marquis (Minister), the King. Below each, his office with two State actions. Visit a Noble
- C — the Event display: four decks of Political cards to draw from. Political cards
- G — the Decrees on display. Take a Decree
- 8 / 9 — the Church track with its Clergy tiles and the Cardinal. Meet the Cardinal
- 11 — the Royal Treasury track. The Royal Treasury
- i — downtown, rows A–E between four coloured streets, with rubble at the row and column ends. Build a Store
- 6 — the Scoring tiles under the columns. Earning wigs for a store
- ii — the Public Building sites around downtown; 1–3 the architects’ buildings and Plans. Open a Public Building
- 5 — the City tile display; 4 the market of goods prices; E the shipyard. Sell Goods
Your player board holds your portfolio (cards above and below), warehouses, rubble columns, wooden houses, Officials, Plans, Clergy tiles and Royal Favors (The player board).
A turn
Your turn, in order:
- Dock your ships that sailed.
- Play one card from your hand of five:
- Into your portfolio (Noble on top: reward; Treasury below: réis), then either
sell goods to any ships or 
trade 1–2 goods with the Nobles for
State actions. - Into the Royal Court: a Noble card
visits him — pay Influence, take one
State action free, then his Noble action; others may follow with a Royal Favor.
A Treasury card 
sponsors its event for réis. - Or discard a card for
1 gold.
- Into your portfolio (Noble on top: reward; Treasury below: réis), then either
- Draw a Political card from the display.
- Refill displays; clear goods from the State actions.
| Noble | State actions (for a good, or free on a visit) | Noble action |
|---|---|---|
 Manuel — tools or gold |  Officials ·  Plan |  Build a Store |
 Marquis — books or gold |  Ship ·  Produce |  Take a Decree |
 King — cloth or gold |  Cardinal ·  Royal Favor |  Open a Public Building |
How the game ends
- Period 1 ends when someone completes a 2nd rubble set or 3 display decks run out: 3 wigs per set, a hand discard for rewards, new ships, new cards. End of the period
- The game ends when someone completes a 4th set or 3 decks run out again: finish the round, play one more, then score. End of the game
- Ties: most rubble sets, then stores, completed Plans, money.
Ways to score
| Source | How | When |
|---|---|---|
| Stores | Scoring tile value × matching Public Buildings | When built, and whenever a matching one opens |
| Ships sailing | 1 wig per crate, to the owner | When full |
 Clergy tiles | Wigs on the back | Church scoring |
 Influence 10 | 1 wig each time a gain ends on 10 | During play |
 Rubble sets | 3 each | End of period 1 and end of game |
| Ships owned | Hull sizes | End |
| Store majorities | Gold 3/2/1, tools 6/3/1, books and cloth 9/6/3 | End |
 Money | 1 per 5 réis, Influence cashed in | End |
| Decrees | As printed | End |
| Officials on completed Plans | 15/10/5 (2 players: 15/5) | End |
| Royal Favors kept | 2 each | End |
| Paying wigs | 1 wig per missing Influence on a visit | During play (a loss) |
What each resource is for
| Resource | Why you need it | How you get it | How you use it |
|---|---|---|---|
 Goods | Actions and money | Produce, rewards, the emergency gold | Trade with Nobles, build ships, sell |
| Réis | Building | Selling, tucking Treasury cards, rewards | Land, hired Officials, events |
| Influence | Visits | Building ships, Church scoring, rewards | Visits and Follows, or as réis |
| Officials | Public Buildings, blocking visits | Start with 8 | Offices raise rivals’ visit cost; staff buildings |
| Plans | Required to open a Public Building | State action, rewards | Flipped when used; score the Officials majority |
| Rubble | Bigger portfolio and warehouses | Building stores and Public Buildings | Sets of 3 colours: +1 capacity, wigs, extra Decree |
| Clergy tiles | Lasting powers | Meeting the Cardinal | Discard at Church scoring for wigs and Influence |
| Royal Favors | Extra actions | King’s State action, rewards | Follow a visit; 2 wigs if kept |
| Political cards | Everything | 5 in hand, 1 drawn a turn | Portfolio or Royal Court |
Teaching tips
-
Teach the card first: every turn is one card, top half (portfolio) or bottom half (court).
-
Then the three Nobles left to right: their goods, State actions and Noble actions.
-
Show how stores score: a Public Building of the right colour in the row or at the head of the street — and that buildings opened later score again.
-
Warn about running out of goods: a portfolio card needs a good afterwards. Build a store early.
-
Show a Noble visit with its optional State action, then a follower choosing just one action after returning the matching Royal Favor. Practice example.